Donaldsonville Glass And Body Works, Inc. V. Gonzales Municipal Police Department Et Al

Case Background

Two separate civil rights lawsuits were filed against the City of Gonzales by multiple towing companies claiming constitutional violations for not adding the companies to the city's towing list. The lawsuit was tried in the United States District Court, Louisiana Middle. The case was assigned to Chief Judge Shelly D. Dick and referred to Magistrate Judge Richard L. Bourgeois, Jr. [Case number: 3:22cv817]

Cause

Plaintiffs Southern Towing and Transport and Gonzalez Towing Repair were two independent, small towing businesses in Ascension Parish. Plaintiff DGB, a Louisiana corporation based in Ascension Parish, had been in business for over 40 years, relying on law enforcement for towing calls and often performing repairs for towed vehicles. For more than two decades, DGB was included in the Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office ("APSO") towing rotation list, which covered all areas of Ascension Parish, including the City of Gonzales. In January 2022, the Gonzales Police Department, under Jackson’s direction, decided to create its own towing rotation list, while still usin